


Unique Proposition

by FortuneSurfer



Category: 3:10 to Yuma (2007), Justified
Genre: Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:22:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26843581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FortuneSurfer/pseuds/FortuneSurfer
Kudos: 8





	Unique Proposition

Loretta finishes her letter.

And while her hand hastily scribbles on, the ominous peals of thunder are tearing the world outside, as to incite the next sentence to appear on the dimly-lit sheet. Or to protest.

She puts the letter into a small pouch, to its other contents, and hangs it on her neck and hides it under her garments. Then, she assures herself that her daddy’s – no, simply hers now – Navy Revolver isn’t missing from her handbag. It’s cold in her hands and too big, but she can handle it. At least, she hopes so. She also takes out her father’s watch to look at it again. There is a speck of blood on the engraving on the back side of it, and wiping it off with her finger, Loretta is certain that she did what she had to do.

She reads the kind, promising words of the engraving, and she’s hurting, but she fights off the urge to give into it. She has no one else to rely on except for herself now, and she won’t even have that if she starts to weep and won’t know how to stop later on.

She gazes outside of the single window of her room at a patch of dismal sky above the frame buildings across the way. The Bennett’s ranch is less than a day away, but they won’t start looking for her until tomorrow morning. She closes her eyes and sighs.

In a minute, she extinguishes the flame in the kerosene lamp and leaves the dark room, still not knowing what to do but not willing to feel cornered. The pouch with her only hope for well-being weighs heavier than it should, and Loretta wonders whether the perceived sensation is the same when they put a rope around your neck.

*

She doesn’t go downstairs, watching the hotel bar from above instead; she quickly realizes that there is a private party going on, and one that is better not to interrupt.

The newly arrived men – Loretta counts a baker’s dozen in total – apparently belong to the same company, some gathered around the green roulette wheel, some around the card table, and two more occupy the bar stools. Heavy smells of food, alcohol, and tobacco mingle in the air; the glasses are banging. There are no women in sight, respectable or otherwise, but the spirits are good. 

They ain’t the law and ain’t the railroad, that’s for sure: too frivolous for the first, too dusty for the other. Carry too many ammunition belts and bandoliers on them to be anything but outlaws. The fact that everybody else disappeared is another indication. By their look and the fact that they can afford to stay in this place, Loretta figures them to be of the more prosperous – and that presupposes the more dangerous – variety. Several thick bunches of bank notes that she catches a glimpse of lying on the roulette wheel when one of them steps aside confirm her suspicion.

Loretta has been around criminals for quite a while now, and so, she instinctively does the first thing she always does – she looks for the boss and is fairly sure that it’s the man (although the way he’s dressed and carries himself call to her mind the word _gentleman_ ) in all black at the bar counter. How he watches everybody from a distance and feels both present and yet not entirely suggest to her his higher standing within the group. She can’t recall ever seeing his face on a wanted poster before, but there are so many bandits out there, they‘ll run out of paper sooner than depict them all… And Loretta is sure she would remember that particular face as there is a deep, familiar sadness in his features whenever they relax. Like he lost somebody very close once.

As it is, she can’t go out past them and doesn’t want to go back in her room, and so Loretta sits down on the floor and, hidden behind the balusters, watches them from a spot in the shadows and listens to their conversations as best she can from above. And after sometime she hears what she needed to hear – one of those gamblers wins big and somebody from the others makes a mocking envious remark about how they’ll wait and see whether he’ll have the same luck in Dawson.

Dawson. A proposition starts to take shape in Loretta’s mind. It’s a slim chance, and she isn’t quite sure how to approach the idea, although it ain’t like she has many choices to pick from, but in a few seconds of her hesitation, she loses her freedom to choose even between the choices she had.

Next thing she knows the boss, on whom she fixed her eyes without realizing it, opens his mouth and says: “Something on your mind, miss?” before he looks up directly at her. He asks the question not too loud but somehow loud enough for everybody else to instantly turn their attention to her as well.

Loretta stands up from her place on the floor. She replies confidently, drawing her strength from the memories of men who tried to cross her before. She doesn’t want him or any of them to think her easily spooked; she can’t allow it now.

“Yes, sir. I’ve noticed that your men are very dissimilar to each other. So what does it take for somebody to be in your outfit?”

He smiles at her open-mouthed, but his eyes are assessing and wild. The eyes of an unforgiving man. They stand in contrast to his low pleasant voice when he asks her then, like he is genuinely curious:

“Why, you’d be willing to join us, young lady?”

In truth, in a day or two, anything would be safer than staying in town, waiting for the Bennets or their pocket-posse to find her or anybody in town to squeal on her to them. But of course she doesn’t tell him any of it.

“Only if you treat those under your command with due respect,” Loretta replies.

Her words are met with laughter from the rest of the outfit. Except for the man who’s been sitting beside their boss all along, the nattiest dresser of them all.

“You startin’ with the wrong end of the offer. Miss,” says he in warning tones, and Loretta thinks that she managed to insult him by questioning the working conditions in their gang.

To Loretta’s relief, the boss takes it from there again:

“ _Are_ there any talents you happen to possess to make you of interest for me? Are you squeamish when there’s lots of mud or blood around you? Because, unfortunately, that’s a given.” His tone playfully underscores how uninviting the prospects must be for her, and Loretta is glad that he doesn’t sound like he’s flirting with her then – much more like he’s earnestly trying to turn her away from this kind of life, unaware that his good neighborliness is wasted on her. “Can you ride a horse for days? How good are you with guns and explosives? Or maybe you have any other skills that my men could benefit from?”

“Yeah… there sure are some,” interjects one of the men at the card table and winks and blows her a kiss.

Loretta shudders internally but on the surface only gives him a cold look of disdain. The pig’s gesture doesn’t find support among his friends, though, and he ain’t so proud of himself anymore neither when the boss half-turns to him and inquires: 

“Did anybody ask for your opinion, Tommy?”

The man pales and seems to grow smaller.

“No. Nobody. Sorry, Boss.”

“And do _I_ have to apologize to the young lady for you?”

He doesn’t raise his voice, but the sternness in it, the intensity in the calmness of his face, make the question sound like a wolf growl disguised as human speech. Even though the anger isn’t directed at her, Loretta feels afraid of him.

“I- I’m sorry, miss. It was a stupid joke,” babbles the jester and respectfully tilts the brim of his hat.

“It was,” agrees Loretta.

Then, the boss turns back and smiles at her again.

“See? A young woman of such delicate complexion, on her own, when there’re so many dangerous, wild men out there. Pray tell me about yourself.” And he motions for her to descend to him.

Reluctantly, Loretta decides to accept this invitation, given how he showed to her that she’ll be safe beside him.

“I’m no stranger to horse riding. And a friend taught me how to shoot. But I think the reason I could be an asset to you and your crew is my way with people. I have a knack for making deals happen,” explains she as she nears the place where he sits with such an air of comfort one could think he’s in the saddle on his trusty horse. “Ask Mags Bennett for confirmation.”

“From the town Bennett?”

“That’s right.”

“Convey my regards to her. I’ll make sure to pay her a visit another time.”

Loretta knew she should bring her up – everybody knows about Mags Bennett’s hemp and moonshine. And it ain’t like she’s lying to the man, since Loretta was for a long time her confidant and a part of her family. That is, until she found out Mags took away her own.

“Now. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I couldn’t help hearing that you’re headed for Dawson. Well, you might want to change your directions at least for the next few days.”

“How so?”

“There is that big politician that will be opening up a new railroad section. Which means there will be so much mayhem going on, you couldn’t spit in that town without hitting a marshal, or a Pinkerton, or a man from sheriff’s posse.” Loretta makes a pregnant pause. “And I don’t mean to presume that you might belong to the unlawful people consciously avoiding their scrutiny. But whatever business that you have there probably won’t be happening until everybody’s dispersed.”

Loretta is very aware of the many stares directed at her, but she’s trying to concentrate on the boss listening to her. Although, it feels like it’s not primary her words that he’s interested in but something else. Something beyond them, maybe even inside her.

“And which deal you’ve got to offer us instead?” he prompts her.

“If I might make a suggestion, you can make use of this time. There’s a man named Wynn Duffy at Fort Nobles, which is about eighty miles from here, and there’s news that needs delivering to him within the next few days. And a small parcel, to boot.”

“Nah, who the hell do you think we are to peddle goods for you?! U.S. Mail?”

The boss raises his hand without looking at the man, and the protest dies immediately. So Loretta goes on.

“I _was_ going to send it with the mail stagecoach that will be taking off this evening,” she lies. “But you and your men, will be much faster, and I think the parcel will be safer with you, too. Can’t imagine anybody who would try to interfere with an outfit like yours.”

“Then, you don’t know how many fools there are out there,” smirks the boss meaningfully, and Loretta realizes what is it that makes his attentiveness feel so intimidating. Like a snake, he doesn’t blink.

“I should say that Mr. Duffy is a good friend of mine, and he’ll pay you a substantial sum for the trouble of getting him that parcel upon receiving it…”

“The original date of opening was May 15,” states the man sitting beside the boss. “Where does the information about the railroad come from? Or is it something you just heard? Or made up now.”

He casually drops the last sentence, but the boss doesn’t scold him for accusation and doesn’t discourage him from talking, as he did with everybody else, apparently interested in the same things himself.

Loretta doesn’t have to feign confidence when she replies:

"They moved it up just three days ago. I have it on good authority. I’m on friendly terms with a particular marshal, and he meant to visit right after the event. Y’see, he saved me from a molester some five years ago. Shot his prick off and let him suffer for a full hour after that before killing the bastard. It was a horrible death.” Saying this, she shoots a look at the man at the card table and doesn’t see the corner of the boss’ mouth curl up a bit. “He’s been interested in my well-being ever since.”

There’s a healthy amount of rumination palpable in the room after that. Loretta curses in her mind, not so sure now whether she should have indicated her connection to the law differently. Whether that’ll make them lose any interest they had in the first place, or worse, provoke them somehow. To distract them from her maybe misstep she says, bluffing:

“Hey, if you don’t want to help me, that’s fine and dandy. There’s that stagecoach, and it will be you missing on that opportunity sitting your asses off, whoring and boozing in this dirthole like that’s all you’re good for.” 

The man sitting beside the boss, who Loretta guesses is his right hand or something, huffs out a laugh at that, with no malice in it. The reaction catches her off guard, especially with how he seems to be the one most suspicious of her, but Loretta thinks of Raylan saying to her on more than one occasion that she is one of the bravest people he’s ever met (and too brave for her own good) and hopes that this man in this moment, too, can’t help respecting her courage.

The boss, though: he raises an eyebrow.

“Is your marshal friend in your pocket, little girl? He better be or I’m afraid he might not make it in time next time you open your mouth to say something stupidly bold or boldly stupid.”

The words chill her to the bones.

The other looks at him like he doesn’t understand that change of heart either, but after a few seconds of Loretta’s absolute certainty that starting this conversation was her big mistake, the boss indicates that his comment was, above all, friendly advice for the future.

“Thankfully, I understand. Miss…”

He expects her to give him the name and she does.

“McCready. Loretta.”

“…McCready wants us to know about the many friends she has, so that it doesn’t escape us that she is a woman to be reckoned with. It’s what you expect from somebody of her young age. But also that we don’t dwell on the desperation of her need,” he adds, smiling. He watches her watch him licks his lips and continues in a benevolent tone: “Well, you can have another friend if you want to, Loretta. I’ve been in these parts long enough to know that here your life often depends on a mere scrap of information.”

So, he figured her out. No matter. She’s fine as long as they’ll actually do what she needs them to do.

“But do tell me how do I know that you won’t send your marshal and his marshal friends lookin’ for us in that Fort Nobles? He’d sure appreciate a hint like that.”

Loretta feels that it’s her last test and naturally doesn’t say that, come hell or high water, Raylan would find them all by himself if he ever truly wanted to.

“That’d be awful ungrateful of me, and I don’t think I’ve made anything to leave that impression. ‘Sides, as far as I remember, you didn’t introduce yourself. So, the only thing I know you were fine gentlemen willing to do me a favor.”

To show that for her the deal is sealed now, Loretta takes out her pouch and offers it to him.

The boss carefully takes it, without tearing his eyes from her.

“Alright.” He weighs it in his hands and smiles at her yet again and winks. “I see Mags Bennet’s legacy is in good hands.”

He leaves it to her to decide whether he meant her knack for making deals happen that’s just been demonstrated to him or whatever he imagines in the pouch and himself respectively.

“You’d like me not to look into it, right?”

Loretta raises her chin.

“Naturally. There might be a letter to my future husband in it as well.”

He grins like he doesn’t believe her lie one bit. But she feels quite sure that he won’t open the delivery.

*

Loretta suspects that the boss is a patient man, who is wealthy enough not to want whatever savings a young woman like her might have in that pouch. And perhaps more importantly, he strikes her as a man who is thrilled to be intrigued, and so he’ll probably wait until his outfit arrives in Fort Nobles, entertaining himself with different ideas of what he and his men might be transporting.

And even when he’ll see the sign DUFFY’S APPRAISAL SERVICES and later the small shiny gems themselves, Loretta hopes that the man, whose name she very much intends to learn, won’t realize that her letter with the information about what is believed to be a mine, as well as the implications of it all, and her request to contact the Black Pike company is way more important than anything else.

She has no choice either way now, but with a little help – from her friends here and her parents above – Loretta might be safe before she’ll have the need to ask Raylan to protect her. Might get her revenge on the Bennetts, too.


End file.
